Case dropped against Sheffield student who wielded knife in Buckingham Palace

He was sectioned under the mental health act after his arrest


A University of Sheffield student who was arrested in August for carrying a knife into Buckingham Palace has had the case dropped.

The Chinese international student, Hang Zhang who is 25, was sectioned under the mental health act after he was found with an offensive weapon in a public place.

The weapon, believed to be a fold-down knife, was found in his shoe and he allegedly told police he wished to “kill the Queen”. He was arrested on the afternoon of 12th August.

Hang Zhang is a student at Sheffield University

During a hearing on Thursday, charges against him were dropped, with the reason cited as being due to his mental health problems. Zhang had previously told police he was worried that the Chinese government were following him.

At a hearing in October, Hang Zhang, who lives near Sheffield Cathedral, had pleaded not guilty and denied the charges against him.

This security alert at Buckingham Palace was the fourth in three months.

He remains as an in-patient at a mental health facility in Sheffield.